A/n: Thanks for all the reviews…

The Letter

Hermione awoke the next morning, her head spinning. She tried to get herself out of bed but a sharp pain seared across her head. Someone had opened the blinds because blinding sunlight was trying to penetrate her eyelids.

"Blaise wanted me to give you this," a familiar voice called out to her.

She opened her eyes once again and saw Cheryl standing over her. She didn't need or want Blaise's sympathy, but since Cheryl wasn't leaving she took the potion reluctantly. After downing it in one gulp she sat up. She instantly felt better, but her headache wasn't ebbing away. Maybe it was because she was starting to get sensitized to the hangover potion.

She looked at the clock to see that it was just after seven. Her eyes scanned the room, someone had cleaned it. Just the sight of it all made her angry. She was Hermione Granger, she was the one who cleaned up messes, she didn't create them.

"You stayed the night?" She asked.

"Of course we did Hermione." Cheryl replied.

"Why?"

"Well Hermione…"

"You think I can't take care of myself?"

"No that's not it at all!"

"Because if you haven't notice I've been doing just fine for the past eight years," she said loudly.

There was a long pause. She stared at her cousin who didn't back down from her gaze.

"We thought that you would like the company," Cheryl said tentatively. "Plus I have some more news."

"Don't tell me," she started sarcastically. "You and Blaise are finally getting married and having a pair of twins."

"Well I don't know about twins…"

Hermione couldn't believe her ears. She watched as Cheryl reached eagerly inside the pocket of her jeans and pulled out the ring. She placed it on her left hand, and showed Hermione who closed her mouth instantly.

"Wait," she said smiling. "You're getting married?"

"Yes," Cheryl responded beaming.

"And…you're PREGNANT?!"

"Yes."

Hermione jumped out of her bed and gave her cousin a huge hug. She looked down at the sparkle of the large diamond that now dressed her cousin's left hand. She did feel happy for her, but she also felt a pang of jealousy. She shifted her gaze from the ring back up to her cousin.

"I am so happy for you." She said smiling.

"Blaise is making breakfast, and we need to go over plans for the wedding. You're my maid of honor of course, and we have to make plans for the engagement party. We don't want to wait too long we've been together for eight years."

Hermione moved to her dresser and found her black leggings.

"We have to have an engagement party. I was thinking next week, at the club where we first met. We will have to invite everyone, Richard, Ryan, Draco…"

"Wha…OUCH!" Hermione screamed out in pain. She had just closed the dresser drawer on her hand.

"Yes, Draco is coming to the engagement party."

"But isn't he too busy, plus why would he want to come?"

"Um… maybe it's because he's the best man."

Hermione looked to her throbbing hand. To be in the presence of Malfoy, the one who stole her heart and never gave it back. The thought of him being so close to her made her stomach churn. She hadn't talked to him in eight years. Her mind soon flew to the letter that she received only the night before.

She couldn't fight Cheryl's decision for inviting him. She did have a point. He was probably the only person from Blaise's past that was going to come to the wedding. Her mind was soon flooded with the thoughts of him, what was she going to say to him?

"I want a small wedding." Cheryl continued. Hermione was snapped out of her thoughts. "We could have it right in the backyard. I know Mum would want me to get married in the gazebo."

Hermione changed hastily as Cheryl went on and on about possible plans including flowers and favors.

"So are you going to have a traditional muggle wedding or a wizard's wedding?" Hermione asked as she put her bushy hair into a neat bun.

"I haven't thought about that," Cheryl said thoughtfully. "I'll have to ask Blaise, but it will most likely be a regular wedding, because most of the guests will be non-magical."

"That makes sense," Hermione added.

They both left the room, Cheryl walked towards the stairs that led to the kitchen as Hermione went to the bathroom. As she washed her face she couldn't help but feel a surge of jealousy erupt from her core. She knew that it should have been her, that she should be getting married. Malfoy had proposed to her after all. He had tried to convince her to come to Julliard with him, but her stubbornness got the best of her. She felt guilty, and she felt obligated to take over the studio. She wanted to do Cheryl a favor, and to honor her aunt's wishes by keeping the studio within the family name, but look where that got her. Here she was alone and miserable.

Her life wasn't bad, it was just monotonous with the same routine. She had of course stayed in touch with her magical roots. She had written three books, including her bestselling "Hogwarts, A Modern History". She also worked in the Ministry of Magic from home perfecting new spells for auror defense. She was now working on her new book exposing the injustice and unconscionable relationships between wizards and house elves.

Then there was her love life, which was now non-existent. She had a couple of boyfriends over the years, but the relationship was always one-sided. She only got into said relationships to feed her carnal need as a woman as well as to feel the closeness of another human. Like clockwork her relationships would come to a screeching halt when the guy would say the "L" word or when they would realize that she didn't want a commitment. She couldn't give her heart to anyone because she had already given it to Malfoy, plus Malfoy was a tough act to follow.

Then there was Malfoy himself, she knew of his great conquests. She had seen him in the wizarding tabloids. He was always with some muggle dancer who got swept into his good looks and his money, on top of his superb dance ability. He had tried to keep in touch with her. He would send her tickets to his shows, but she never replied nor did she attend. She knew that it would be painful to see him perform. It felt almost like a slap in the face, especially when she received the first letter. She always wondered what her life would have been like if she had decided to give up the studio when she had the chance, but even thinking about it now was too painful. She wanted to admit that she had regretted her mistake, that she was wrong, but even admitting that she was wrong was hard to do.

She finished brushing her teeth and grabbed a couple of Advil from her medicine cabinet. The smell of bacon hit her in the face as she floated towards the stairs. She paused at the top of the stairs when she heard Cheryl's voice.

"You're honestly not thinking about inviting her!"

"She's getting married. I don't understand why I can't invite her, she was my friend." Blaise responded.

"Oh that makes sense," Cheryl whispered loudly. "To invite the person you cheated on me with. Do you honestly think I want her at our wedding?"

"That's the point, it is our wedding." He said. "I am giving you the full reigns of this wedding. You can do whatever you want. I don't care if we get married here, or in Monaco, or in a dungeon for Merlin's sake as long as you are marrying me. Since I am giving you the full reigns I expect to at least have control over who I get to invite to the wedding."

There was a long pause. Hermione was afraid to breathe, she didn't want to get caught eavesdropping.

"Ok." Cheryl's voice said. "But how do you think Hermione is going to feel? If she comes you know she's going to bring Ron. Did you see Hermione's reaction when we told her that they were getting married? Even when I told her we were inviting Malfoy she nearly broke her hand from shock. How is she going to feel when she faces both Ron and Malfoy?"

Hermione didn't want to hear anymore. She stomped down the stairs and plastered a smile on her face. So Blaise cheated on Cheryl with Pansy. Was that the reason why they waited so long to get married?

"Good morning Blaise," she called out cheerily. "Thanks for the hangover potion."

"You're welcome." He replied smiling. "I hope you are hungry."

Over breakfast they talked about the various plans for the wedding. Cheryl had already looked into designers for her wedding dress. During the whole exchange Blaise kept quiet. He only put in his input when he was asked. They talked of the wedding date which was about a month from now, they wanted to have it on the date that they first met. Hermione remembered that date clearly because it was the same day that she and Malfoy got unusually close.

When Cheryl was talking eagerly of the engagement party a barn owl flew through the open window of the small kitchen. It had a Daily Prophet clutched in its beak. Hermione got up from the table and went to the bowl on her counter which kept the keys to the studio as well as loose knuts. She grabbed a few to pay the owl and she sat back down at the table. Blaise disappeared behind the paper as Cheryl was talking non-stop about summer colors, and the best that would go with the greenery of their backdrop.

Blaise cleared his throat unexpectedly. Cheryl stopped talking instantly and turned to her fiancée.

"What is it Blaise?" Hermione asked.

"Ehm… nothing you would be interested in Hermione." He said not lowering the paper.

Cheryl looked at him with a puzzled expression. Hermione mimicked her cousin's feelings.

"What is it?" Cheryl asked.

"Oh nothing interesting."

"Blaise I know when you are lying," Cheryl reached for the paper knocking her orange juice on Blaise's lap in the process. He jumped up in shock as the smell or orange juice wafted across the table. He placed the paper down on the table and grabbed the roll of paper towels. Hermione was surprised at how much of a muggle he was turning into. She was surprised that he didn't reach for his wand.

"Cheryl…"

"I'm sorry…"

"It's alright."

"Are you sure?"

"Yea it's ok."

But Hermione didn't hear this exchange. She looked down to the page that Blaise was just reading which was now soaking up orange juice. For what seemed like the third time this morning her heart stopped.

The Wizarding World's Most Eligible Bachelor Is Not So Eligible Anymore

Her eyes flickered to the large picture that took up half of the page. There was Malfoy with his usual smirk his eyes glinting up at the ceiling and on his arm was a pretty girl. She smiled eagerly at the camera, her dark hair glinting in the apparent sunlight. She gazed at the backdrop, it was the stage of his new production right in London. From the erectness of her stature Hermione knew instantly that she was dancer.

Her breakfast churned instantly in her stomach. Blaise looked down at the paper as she picked it. While she was reading the article, phrases like "long-term", "possible future", and "in love" jumped up at her.

"Hermione," Blaise called out softly.

"It's ok," she choked. "Cheryl, I think I am going to cancel classes this morning."

Hermione didn't wait for a response. She hurried out the kitchen before anyone could see the tear that fell out of her eye. The fact that Malfoy was with someone didn't surprise her. She had knew of his conquests but never did he use the words "future", "love", or "long-term". But that wasn't the only thing that was bothering her. It was the fact that everyone seemed to be moving forward in their lives and here she was stuck in a stagnant pool of her normal routine. Blaise and Cheryl were getting married and starting a family, Ron was getting married to Pansy, and Harry was already married. She was just Hermione, twenty-five, single, and in love with someone she couldn't have.

She closed her bedroom door shut behind her. Her life was this way because she made it so. She had no one to blame but herself. She chose not to go to Julliard. She decided to stay behind to stay in charge of a studio that Cheryl didn't really care about. She brought this on herself. She looked around at the pictures that hung around the walls. There she was teaching, only dancing to demonstrate, never dancing for herself. Her heart wasn't in it.

Her eyes fell to the letter that she received last night. She unfolded the letter and finally began reading it.

Hermione,

It's been a while since my last letter but it's been awhile since I've done anything new. The last show I was in ran for twenty eight weeks. I was disappointed once again to find that you didn't bother to come to the show. Since that show has come to a close I've been getting offers left and right. I am now dancing in a new ballet choreographed by the most talented Elijah Bennett. My new partner is Ana Miller, she's really great Hermione you would like her.

I would really like for you to see the practice performance. I've been hearing you name lately, especially since your new batch of student makes up one fourth of the incoming Juilliard class. Elijah keeps raving about them. I am glad to hear that you are doing well. He tells me that he will write you soon.

I know it's been awhile but I need to talk to you, face to face. I have to tell you something before the Prophet comes out tomorrow morning. Can you meet me at the Three Broomsticks? I will be there at eleven.

Draco

She reread the letter three times. She could imagine him waiting for her at the Three Broomsticks. She knew what he wanted to tell her, he wanted to warn her before the news came out, but at that time she was passed out from a drunken stupor. No matter, the damage was done. She also figured out who his girlfriend was. "…she's really great Hermione you would like her." He had never said that about any of his female counterparts before. She balled up the letter and placed it in the garbage before grabbing her sneakers. She couldn't breathe, she needed to get out of the house.

Draco Malfoy looked out of his London flat window. He knew that she received the Prophet by now, and since she didn't meet him last night he could only imagine her reaction to the news. He sat at his desk and took out another piece of parchment. Maybe he needed to explain it further, but knowing Hermione she wouldn't want a letter. It would have been better for him to explain it in person. But what exactly do you say to a person you haven't seen in eight years, yet alone a person you once loved? He grabbed his traveling cloak. Maybe it was time for him to visit.

A/n: So a shortie but a goody I hope… just wanted to update while I am waiting in limbo… thanks for all the reviews… you guys rock! I am going to try and finish this fic before I go back to school. I am going to guesstimate and say that I have about 5-6 chapters left. Thanks again for the reviews… GO TEAM USA… GO WORLD!

As Always… Cherbi161